


The Quetzal and the Coeurl

by nychus



Series: IgNoct Week 2018 [5]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Day 3, First Kiss, IgNocti Week 2018, Ignoct Week, M/M, Masquerade
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-02-08
Packaged: 2019-03-15 12:51:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13613751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nychus/pseuds/nychus
Summary: Braver behind a mask, Noctis seeks answers from the one he loves.





	The Quetzal and the Coeurl

**Author's Note:**

> IgNoct Week Day 3: Simple Prompt Masquerade Ball

Noctis grunted as his sleeve was pulled down with force to be sure it resided at the right place just above his wrist.

“There,” Regis said, giving one final look over his son, “I think you are ready to go.”

“Thanks, Dad,” he mumbled, but he gave a genuine smile. It was odd having the final touches being done by his father and not Ignis. It was nice too, a chance to spend some time together.

“Are you excited to hide amongst the crowd?” Regis ask, taking his turn in the mirror to be sure all was right.

Noctis smiled, “Yeah, it’ll be nice not to have to dance with every single available daughter all night.”

“Maybe you’ll be relaxed enough to find someone just for you.” Noctis snorted to that; he had tried hard to hold back the laughter, but failed. “What? Your grandparents met at a ball such as this, so there’s a chance.” Regis smiled at his grinning son.

“Yeah, Dad, I’m sure that’ll happen.”

The king just hummed as he picked up his mask, turning it around in his hands a few times. “Ignis will be out there,” he said casually.

It was amazing that the straightening of Noctis’s spine didn’t create an audible snap as he stood at attention so quickly. “Yeah, and?” he asked, nerves completely betraying any chance of nonchalance.

“Perhaps you can have a good evening with him.”

“That’s not the…”

“You know perfectly well I don’t mean as adviser and prince,” Regis chuckled. His mirth got even louder as he saw the panic stretch across Noctis’s face. “Son, breathe.”

“Am…am I that obvious?”

Another chuckle. “Noctis, I am your father. I see what most others don’t. One of those things I’ve seen has been you watching Ignis for so very long.”

“Does…does he watch me?” Noctis asked tentatively.

“It’s hard to tell with that one,” Regis answered. “He long ago learned the art of schooling outward emotion. I cannot say I’ve seen it, but that’s not to say it’s not there.”

“Are you okay with it? With,” Noctis did a wide arm motion around himself, “everything?”

A gentle hand came to rest on Noctis’s shoulder as his father smiled down at him. “Noctis, you are my son and I love you. Nothing else matters. I want the happily ever after that I was able to spend with your mother, for as short as a time it was. I want you to have that and so much more.”

Father and son stared at each other, smiling and basking in the warm glow of familial love that seemed to evade them more often than not. Noctis muttered a “Thanks, Dad” seconds before there was a knock at the door. That was Regis’s cue to head into the party. He held out his hands and asked if he looked ready and left once he got Noctis’s approval. There was a cheeky “good luck” out of Regis’s mouth as he exited and closed the door behind him.

Noctis sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror. His suit was a dark but vibrant blue with black tie, undershirt, and vest to go with it. The idea was to have something that could accentuate his eyes on purpose, allowing his blue to be all the brighter due to the suit and thus make it look like he was trying to have his eyes the same color as the prince.

His mask was a very detailed facsimile of a Quetzalcoatl, complete with shimmery face paint down the left side of his cheek. His hair also held tinges of blues to finish off the look.

Noctis had wanted to come to the masquerade ball (this year’s theme was beasts of the wilds) but he didn’t want to come as a prince. He just wanted to be. Fortunately, Regis thought the idea was good, so he allowed it. He wasn’t allowed, however, to alter any major part of himself (it was a hard no on colored contacts) so Noctis styled his hair differently and hoped the makeup and mask would keep him undercover. Other than the king, only Clarus and Gladio were aware the prince was to be in attendance.

The secret was hard to keep from Ignis, who knew just about everything that Noctis did, but Noctis didn’t want Ignis to be constantly following him. The man wasn’t trained as well as Gladio to be a subtle watcher of the world around and Noctis knew he would feel more comfortable being near the prince.

The ruse was Noctis would be at Prompto’s for the evening, having fought hard to get out of the ball. Ignis wasn’t pleased, he pursed his lips and clinched his jaw to keep from saying anything untowardly when Noctis had given the news. Prompto (who also knew the prince was in attendance) was to run interference in case Ignis felt the need to contact him.

Of course, the real reason that Noctis didn’t want Ignis to know he was going to be at the ball was because he wanted to see how the man interacted with others when he wasn’t working. Part of him hoped he would see the man flirt and dance and maybe even disappear with someone before the end of the night; then maybe he could get past the crush that had recently become all consuming. Part of him hoped that Ignis would recognize him right off without a single word exchanged. All of him hoped he didn’t do something stupid should either of those two occur.

Maybe another reason was because Gladio thought it might be a good time to confess his feelings.

“You’ll be braver behind the mask,” Gladio had said. “And you know Ignis will play along. If he’s not interested, he’ll let you down gently and you’ll know. Then, you both can go about your daily lives as is nothing happened because you can pretend it was nothing but an act.”

With a sigh, Noctis pulled the mask over his face and exited the room through a different door than his father did. He quietly slipped through the Citadel until he could worm his way into the incoming crowd without being noticed. When he got to the door that held guard asking for invitations, it was the first test in how well his disguise worked. The guard who took his invitation wished him a good evening without a second glance. Chances were he was in the clear. If the guard, those meant to watch and protect him, didn’t recognize him, it was unlikely anyone else would.

Except maybe Ignis.

The ballroom was decorated to imitate a random wooded area in the wilds of Lucis. Green was the prevalent color as it was on everything from lights to banners. Blues accentuated the greens on the table cloths to act as water. The illusion made all the greater by the shimmery threads woven into the fabric to give a slight effect of rippling.

It was beautiful to say the least, though one should expect nothing less from the Citadel’s decorators. They knew exactly how to impress but not overly so.

As soon as he was fully inside the ballroom, Noctis glanced around until he found Gladio. Their eyes met briefly and then Gladio gave a quick glance over to where Ignis was. The shield was of course aware of Noctis’s crush, but forbidden to say anything about it. He’d offered to feel out Ignis, see if he at least thought Noctis was attractive, but the prince was adamant that he keep his mouth shut. 

He didn’t want to know, because he was certain he’d never have a chance.

Noctis did glance towards the direction that Gladio’s eyes motioned to and after a few minutes he found Ignis. The man was dressed in a dark purple suit and wore the mask of a coeurl; the electric whiskers painted along his cheeks.

He was in deep conversation with someone that Noctis didn’t recognize and there were a few milling about as if they were waiting for a chance to converse or perhaps dance. Noctis wasn’t sure what he felt about that, so he turned his attention elsewhere for the time being. Maybe he’d work up the nerve to go say hello. Most likely not.

Instead, he headed for the buffet table to find a drink, but was knocked off course when a young lady accidentally stepped back into him. She was profusely apologetic, but Noctis just smiled and said it was fine. She then asked if he would like to dance.

Noctis hadn’t intended on doing any dancing at this ball. He hated it so much, but he found that behind the mask he was actually having fun. All his dance partners were friendly, chatty, and had interesting things to say. Things that, had they known he was the prince, would never be touched on. Some even commented on the missing prince. A few thought he was being a brat, but most of the young women he danced with didn’t blame him.

“I have to be perfect lady for one prince,” one of his partners said, “he has to be the perfect prince for everyone. It must get tiring.”

Suddenly he could understand why so many people enjoyed these types of events. He’d never actually been able to attend one before, he decided, rather he was paraded about as if some commodity up for auction. This was highly preferable.

While he danced and conversed the night away, Noctis always kept half an eye on Ignis. He seemed happy. He was also enjoying himself and Noctis had seen him on the dance floor more than once. It was kind of a relief to see Ignis so relaxed and carefree as sometimes Noctis felt his adviser didn’t know those feelings anymore.

Anytime he glanced Gladio’s way, his friend gave a subtle, but stern, motion towards Ignis. Noctis ignored it. There always seemed to be a group of people waiting around the adviser.

The buffet table had become a bit of respite when Noctis wanted to take a break from dancing. He found a table that was constantly rotating out others his age and everyone was friendly when they also decided to take a break. Noctis was in a conversation concerning the over-exuberance of a councilman’s mother when a young lady joined them. He had danced with her not that long ago and he happily made room for her to join the table.

“Did you get to dance with Scientia?” one of the men asked and Noctis’s eyes widened as he looked at the woman.

“No, no,” she sighed. “The amount of people who want to dance with him is ungodly. You’d have to be really something to break in, I think. But Mollie might get a chance to.”

“She’s been hanging on him all night, waiting to pounce. It’s unseemly,” someone laughed.

Conversation shifted to talk about how Mollie often acted around men she was infatuated with, but Noctis didn’t pay any attention. He shouldn’t be surprised that Ignis was so popular—the man basically oozed sex—but he didn’t like it. He didn’t want to share. Jealousy roared to life in Noctis’s mind and he thought this was the time. Would Ignis see him as “really something” and step away from the crowd? Or would he just ignore him.

With a quick finish of his drink, Noctis bid farewell to the table and searched the crowd for Ignis. Once he was spotted, he looked to Gladio who gave a very noticeable smile and nod.

Ignis was on the dance floor and though the song had just started, Noctis was determined to cut in. He gathered his courage, waited until Ignis was near him, and then butted his way between Ignis and the young lady he was currently with.

The woman squawked indignantly.

“Apologies, but I simply must cut in,” Noctis said, not looking away from Ignis.

There it was, that gleam of understanding in those green eyes. Ignis was aware of who his new partner was but was willing to play whatever game was in store. He also apologized to the woman but said he simply must accept this dance.

“You’ve been quite popular tonight,” Noctis said as they joined the dance. “I realized I couldn’t wait for you to have a free moment any longer.”

“I could say the same of you,” Ignis smiled. “It seems every time I’ve looked out here, you’ve been dancing.”

“You’ve been watching me?”

“It’s hard to not watch someone with such beauty and grace. It makes me wonder how you have not already been claimed by some brilliant suitor.”

“I’m told my standards are too high,” Noctis laughed.

“Oh? What standards would those be?”

“Smart, funny, kind,” Noctis started.

“Those seem like basic wants and should be easy to come by,” Ignis said.

“I also want someone better looking than me, which should be easy, but most people seem to think it’s not possible.”

“I must admit, from what I can tell, I would be in agreement.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Noctis laughed. “I’d like them to be taller. I have this stupid fantasy of them coming up behind me, wrapping their arms around me, and just resting their head on my head or shoulder.”

“Hmm,” Ignis said, that smile having yet to leave his face. “Would you like someone to take care of you? Cook and clean?”

“I want someone who cares for me,” Noctis said after a moment. “Someone who knows when I need to be cared for and when they need to kick me in the shins and tell me to do it myself. I would also like to be able to take care of them when they need it and not have to fight them over it.”

“It sounds as if you already know who this person is supposed to be,” Ignis said. “You haven’t spoken to them?”

“Eh, it’s complicated, but mostly I’m afraid to.”

“Would your family not approve?”

A full on laugh came from Noctis, “That is not the issue at all. My father is amazingly astute, figuring out who it was, and told me to be happy.”

There was as slight shift in Ignis’s eyes that Noctis prayed meant was because he was happy to hear that. “Your friends would be okay with it?”

“Yeah, they will.”

Ignis gave another little hum, but said nothing more. The first dance ended but transitioned smoothly into another. Neither men let go.

“What about you? What are your standards?” Noctis asked.

“Oh, too high,” Ignis said. Noctis quirked an eyebrow, though the gesture was lost behind the mask. “Yes, I’m afraid I only want for royalty.”

“Ah,” Noctis said in mock ponderment. “You know, I may know a guy.”

“Oh? What’s he like?”

“Brat, doesn’t know how to care for himself, wants to do nothing but sleep.”

“I may know a guy for you. He’s a bit stiff though, has dry humor, and enjoys cooking with vegetables.”

“He sounds perfect,” Noctis said.

“You believe so?” Ignis asked, leaning his face closer to the prince’s.

“Yeah,” Noctis answered before closing the gap. They stopped dancing in the middle of the dance floor to share their first of many kisses.


End file.
